Is Paula Deen Racist? Celebrity Chef Used N Word, Lawsuit Alleges

Paula Deen has been in the headlines a lot over the last few months and none of the news has been good. Earlier this year, details emerged that Deen, long known for peddling decadent and unhealthy recipes, had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. She was accused of trying to profit from her disease and the unhealthy lifestyle many claim she promotes.

Now, Deen may be in a whole new kind of hot butter water.

A new lawsuit alleges that Deen and her brother, Bubba Hiers, made racist comments towards a former employee and also engaged in sexual harassment, the infliction of emotional distress and even physical assault.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of a former employee of Paula Deen Enterprises named Lisa Jackson.

One of the most egregious examples of Deen’s alleged behavior outlined in the suit involves the celebrity chef responding to a question about what the caterers at a wedding should wear by saying, “Well what I would really like is a bunch of little n***ers to wear long-sleeve white shirts, black shorts and black bow ties, you know in the Shirley Temple days, they used to tap dance around.”

Deen and Hiers allegedly made other racist remarks, including saying that President Obama would “n***er-rig” the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Hiers allegedly sexually harassed Jackson while she worked as the manager of a restaurant he co-owned with Deen. According to the lawsuit, he watched porn on a computer in the same office in which Jackson worked and asked her to provide him with photos of herself when she was young.

Jackson left her job in 2010 because, she says, nothing was done to address her complaints.